Wednesday, January 30, 2008

Financial Times 2008 MBA Rankings are Out!

Not only are MBA aspirants nervous about their admission results, the B-schools are too. Annually, Financial Times publishes the global ranking.

And this year's Global Top 10 are (2007 ranking in parentheses):
1. University of Pennsylvania: Wharton (1)
2. London Business School (5)
3. Columbia Business School (2)
4. Stanford University GSB (3)
5. Harvard Business School (3)
6. Insead (7)
7. MIT: Sloan (14)
8. IE Business School (11)
9. University of Chicago GSB (6)
10. University of Cambridge: Judge (15)
more ...

USA Top 10 B-Schools (2007 in parentheses) are:
1. University of Pennsylvania: Wharton (1)
2. Columbia Business School (3)
3. Stanford University GSB (3)
4. Harvard Business School (3)
5. MIT: Sloan (7)
6. University of Chicago GSB (5)
7. New York University: Stern (6)
8. Dartmouth College: Tuck (7)
9. Yale School of Management (9)
10. Northwestern University: Kellogg (11)
more ...

Talking about competition ..... Whao!


Jimmy Low

Saturday, January 26, 2008

Now, Where Should I Start?

Well, as a first timer like myself, naturally you will want to know what GMAT is. Wiki explains it all. If you want something more official, then go to the "horse-mouth": The Graduate Management Admission Council.

One website that you should not miss is the MBA.com. This is your one-stop centre for anything related to MBA including registering for GMAT in your country.

What books do you need and where to get them in Malaysia? Let's start with the books.

a. The Official Guide for GMAT Review 11th Edition (or the latest) aka OG aka Orange book, in short.


This book is a MUST have. Hey, this book is from the creator of GMAT. How can you not have a copy of over 800+ past years questions? This is your GMAT bible. Make sure you pray to it each night. However, I find that the Math review - refresher on the mathematical concepts and English grammar rather "weak" (my personal opinion). The book did state that it is not mean to be a textbook. So, this means you need other books to supplement your studies.

GMAC also produces the Official Guide for GMAT Quantitative Review (green book) and the Official Guide for GMAT Verbal Review (purple book). For me, the Orange book is suffice.

b. What other supplementary books do you need? There are plenty in the market - Kaplan, Princeton Review, McGraw-Hill, Manhattan, Barron's to name a few. Go to the bookstore and check them out. Compare them and find out which will help you in your revision. Each of us has our own personal preference.

c. GMATPrep Test-Preparation software. This is a simulation of the real GMAT. Download the 26MB file from MBA.com.

Where to get these books? Head for Kinokuniya Bookstore at KLCC. They have a good selection of GMAT materials. The OG books (orange, purple and green) each costs about RM120-RM140. The other supplementary materials are about the same price too.

So, can you afford to buy many books? Maybe not. GMAT is a "costly" affair. Each test will cost you US$250 (or RM825 at exchange rate of RM3.30 to US$). Books and other herbal supplements will easily cost you another RM600-800.

d. Download a stopwatch at http://www.online-stopwatch.com/.


This is a timed exam. During your preparation, you want to pace yourself as you progress and adopt and adapt to the "right" speed of answering questions. Typically, many people will advise you to spend 2 minutes for each quant question and 1 3/4 minutes for each verbal question. I have tested this method and it did not work in my favour. In fact, it created more stress than necessary.

Medium and easy questions can be answered in less than 1 minute while tougher ones will take more. As I progressed, I found that I could complete a set of 31 quant questions within 30-50 mins out of an allocated 62 minutes, while a set of 31 verbal questions can be completed within 35-45 mins out of an allocated 57 mins. The no. of errors I made for each set of questions, on average, are less than 3. Thus, I have found my pace and the stopwatch helps me get into that rhythm. Bear in mind, you have a stopwatch during the real exam. Wall clock or watch does not help.

Now, that you know what you are getting into, be prepared.

Jimmy Low

How Important is GMAT?

Of course it is important. Else, why would you and I stress yourself over it? Despite many b-schools claiming that there is no minimum GMAT score, think about it again. Why would there even be a GMAT if it is not needed? GMAT is a common benchmark to rank our academic ability.

Take a look at the top 50 schools ranked by GMAT.



Look at those above 700 and above. These are your prestigous/elite business schools. They are also your top 10 schools listed in Financial Times, BusinessWeek, USNews.com, etc. Wherever they are listed, you can bet your last dollar that GMAT is an important criterion. Like some said, "getting a higher GMAT score puts you in the consideration list (besides your application essays, work experiences, curricular activities, leaderships, etc.); a lower one puts you in a disadvantage position."

Check the class profile of the business schools you are considering. Study the GMAT score range, and the mean (or median if there is one). You want to aim at least the mean score or higher. I don't think you want to tip their GMAT scale south by being one of those at a lower range (imagine your future classmates are the higher end ones). Gosh, don't I stress you out enough?

Hey, we all want to be in the best. So, show your best and score high.


Jimmy Low

Friday, January 25, 2008

Ready, Aim, Score .... Know Your GMAT Score Matrix

As I was learning more about GMAT strategy, I came across this website. Manhattan GMAT explains more about GMAT and its scoring system. If you know where you need to be strong in - quant(itative) or verbal, you can basically predict your GMAT score or focus more attention to.


(Source: Manhattan GMAT)

Let's see. To score at least 700, you need to hit 40 out of 60 on quant and 48 out of 60 on verbal. Each question is statistically weighted for its difficulty and being an adaptive test, you need to make you get more questions correct. While each test will be unique, for a 700 score (40 quant and 48 verbal), you should probably (best guess) get 33/37 correct for quant and 36/41 correct for verbal.

Again, while this gives you some leeways for guessing and making errors, you would probably want to put in extra efforts to score higher.


Jimmy Low

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Data Sufficiency - Sufficient or Not? (Updated)

(Note: Since my last posting on this topic, I have learnt new techniques on answering Data Sufficient questions. Please reread this section for the new knowledge)

The Quantitative (Quant) section is divided into two sub-categories: Problem Solving (PS) and Data Sufficiency (DS). Out of 37 quant questions, about 13/14 questions or 1/3 will be on Data Sufficiency. For most of us, Problem Solving should be easy to score. However, I find DS more challenging:

  1. We have been taught to solve problems, not on whether the information is sufficient to solve a problem; thus, the tendency to spend time and solve it.

  2. We learnt by rote. We memorize workings and through practice, perfect our speed in answering problem solving questions.

Data Sufficiency tests us on the quantitative concepts and principles; the foundation. You are to decide whether the statements — either individually or in combination — provide enough information to answer the question.

(A) If statement 1 alone is sufficient to answer the question, but statement 2 alone is not sufficient.
(B) If statement 2 alone is sufficient to answer the question, but statement 1 alone is not sufficient.
(C) If both statements together are needed to answer the question, but neither statement alone is sufficient.
(D) If either statement by itself is sufficient to answer the question.
(E) If not enough facts are given to answer the question.

Here is a tip that I find helpful and is represented by these two triangle (below)

Now, which to use - AD/BCE or BD/ACE?

A and B refer to Statement (1) only and Statement (2) only respective. Depending on the question stem, which statement is easier to understand? Let's take this example.

Class A and class B took the same test. The average (arithmetic mean) score for class A was 79.5. What was the average score for all the students in both classes?
(1) The average score for class B was 80.5.
(2) Class B had 25 fewer students than class A.

For this question, you need these variables to solve the question:
a. average of Class A (given)
b. average of Class B
c. no. of students of Class A and B or ratio of Class A and B.

Statement (1) only average of Class B is given. Not Sufficient; eliminate A and D.
Statement (2) only does not tell us how many students in Class A and what's the average of Class B. Not Sufficient; eliminate B.
Both Statement (1) and (2) also not sufficient because the missing part is still no. of students in Class A or the ratio of Class A and B students. Eliminate C.

The correct answer is "E" and I took less than 1 minute. By rephrasing the question stem and knowing what information you need, you can play the elimination game. I started with Statement (1); which alone is will not solve the question, thus, immediately eliminate answer A and D. You have increased your chances of finding the right answer from 20% (1 out of 5) to 33% (1 out of 3).

You can also tackle this question starting with Statement (2) as folllows:

Statement (2) does not tell us how many students in Class A and we do not know what is the average of Class B. Not Sufficient; eliminate B and D.
Statement (1) alone does not tell us about no. of students of Class A and B or their ratio. Eliminate A.
Both Statement (1) and (2) also not sufficient because the missing part is still no. of students in Class A or the ratio of Class A and B students. Eliminate C.

Whether you use AD/BCE or BD/ACE, you can still come to the right answer. Then does it matter which one? Well, whichever statement (1) or (2) is "easier" for you to start. If Statement (1) is "easier", then use AD/BCE, use BD/ACE. After some practice, you should be able to master this technique and shave 1 minute from "easy" data sufficiency questions. If half of data sufficiency questions, say 6 questions, are "easy" ones, you have saved 6 minutes which you could use to tackle 2-3 "difficult" questions.

Look at the triangle again and visualize how it works. After a few attempts, you should be able to master this triangle. Draw this triangle at the start of your test and use it whenever you come across DS questions.

Jimmy Low

P/S: As you noticed, I use the quote/unquote marks when I mentioned "easy/easier" and "difficult" questions. What is "easy" for me might be "difficult" for you. It is a question of relative difficulty. But, with a strong foundation and more practice, you can handle them.

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Young MBA Network

I found this link on Young MBA network in my Facebook group. It's new but give it a try.

If you have Facebook, look for me at http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=750812956


Jimmy Low

Monday, January 21, 2008

USNews.com B-School Rankings by Specialization

While the likes of BusinessWeek and Financial Times rank B-schools based on broad criteria, I searched USNew.com and they publish US rankings based on specialization. I hope this helps you in choosing the US B-schools you are interested to apply

Business Specialties: Finance Ranked in 2007
1.
University of Pennsylvania (Wharton)
2.
University of Chicago
3. New York University (Stern)
4.
Columbia University (NY)
5.
Stanford University (CA)
6.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Sloan)
University of California–Los Angeles (Anderson)
8.
Harvard University (MA)
9.
Northwestern University (Kellogg) (IL)
10.
University of California–Berkeley (Haas)

Business Specialties: Management Ranked in 2007
1.
Harvard University (MA)
2.
Northwestern University (Kellogg) (IL)
3.
University of Michigan–Ann Arbor (Ross)
4.
Stanford University (CA)
5.
University of Pennsylvania (Wharton)
6.
Dartmouth College (Tuck) (NH)
7.
University of Virginia (Darden)
8.
Duke University (Fuqua) (NC)
9.
University of California–Berkeley (Haas)
10.
Columbia University (NY)

Business Specialties: International Ranked in 2007
1.
Thunderbird (Garvin) (AZ)
2.
University of South Carolina (Moore)
3.
University of Pennsylvania (Wharton)
4.
Columbia University (NY)
Duke University (Fuqua) (NC)
6.
University of Michigan–Ann Arbor (Ross)
7.
Harvard University (MA)
New York University (Stern)
9.
University of California–Los Angeles (Anderson)
10.
University of California–Berkeley (Haas)

Business Specialties: Marketing Ranked in 2007
1.
Northwestern University (Kellogg) (IL)
2.
University of Pennsylvania (Wharton)
3.
Duke University (Fuqua) (NC)
4.
Columbia University (NY)
5.
Harvard University (MA)
University of Michigan–Ann Arbor (Ross)
7.
Stanford University (CA)
University of California–Berkeley (Haas)
9.
University of Chicago
10. University of California–Los Angeles (Anderson)
University of Texas–Austin (McCombs)

I list the top-10 US B-schools for the common specializations/concentrations that by Asians will taken (I presume). If you need the top 11-2o or other specializations, please contact me.


Jimmy Low

BusinessWeek's Business School Rankings & Profiles

Here is a BusinessWeek guide for those who are looking for business schools http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/rankings/

Some of us have applied to a few business schools. We can share with you our personal experiences and expectations. While whatever we share with you is based on personal experiences, we recommend you to speak to the Admission Director for a formal reply or the school alums or current student(s).

"If you think education is expensive, try ignorance" - Derek Bok


Jimmy Low

Sunday, January 20, 2008

GMAT - GrandMother of All Tests

I have reached a point in my career where getting an MBA - in my case, I want a reputable US MBA - will bring me on my next career wave. Getting into top 10-20 business schools is my immediate aim. Most business schools require GMAT (Graduate Management Admission Test) as part of their admission criteria. For those top 10-20 schools, we are talking about a score of least 700 out of 800.

It takes a strong will and discipline to prepare for GMAT. I have been revising for the past 2 months and I must say this test is like no other tests I have taken before. Having not done maths for 16 years (I thought that that was the last time I would ever touch Pythagorean theorem and wonder what the heck is "parallelogram"), it is back to school again. I have devoted at least 2 hours most nights (since I am pretty exhausted from work). Being in the telecommunications industry is no help either as this industry, to me, is the most dynamic industry to be in. You grow white hairs faster by being in the industry than anywhere else (ask Dato' Jamaluddin Ibrahim). Spending time revising for GMAT gives me an opportunity to get back to books and be ready for first year MBA.

In the process of preparing for GMAT, I learnt many new things from the quantitative and verbal sections. No calculator is allowed for quantitative section. When was the last time you did not use a calculator? This little gadget is part of your working life that the gadget is never far away from us. Even our handphone has calculator function. Without a calculator, the quantitative test "forces" you to work with pen/pencil and paper, and solve the problem quickly. Our brain needs this kind of sharpening sometimes. Also, it "forces" you to see the problem from a different angle and deduce an answer quickly. I have applied this at work and I am pleased that I can now solve problems in a much quicker and "out-of-the-box" approach.

The verbal section covers reading comprehension, critical reasons and sentence correction. I like all three. When I read and prepare proposals, I am more selective in my choice of words and express myself with greater clarity. As a manager in the COO's Office, I attend many presentations and as l listen, I begining to question the assumptions and each statement made. What's the presenter trying to say? What is he implying? As I start thinking what was said and the hidden message, I sharpen my listening skill and thought process. This puts you at a different level. Sentence correction is about correctness, concision and clarity. Whenever I write, I am mindful of 3c's.

While the GMAT journey may be tough, and not many choose this path, I am glad I took that first step. It prepares you for a different experience. I would recommend managers to take them even though they may not pursue an MBA immediately. After all, the GMAT result is valid for 5 years. You won't regret doing it.

For me, it is the ultimate test - the GrandMother of All Tests.


Jimmy Low

GMATPrep Installation

We all know how important the GMATPrep is. After all, it's the only official question prep from the GMAC. Unfortunately, you can only take the test twice - that is, until you reset the program. And how do you do that? Easily apparently. This information was taken from GMATClub.com.

Original post

----

I've actually found a much easier way to get past the GMAT install issue.

All you have to do is go to: C:\Program Files\GMATPrep\exams

make a folder in there called old_exams_set1

Copy in:
practice test1.log
practice test1.xact
practice test2.log
practice test2.xact

These files only exist if you took the exams... put them in old_exams_set1

Then just go back to C:\Program Files\GMATPrep\exams and delete

practice test1.log
practice test1.xact
practice test2.log
practice test2.xact

Now the software is "reset" and doesnt know you've taken the exams.

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GMAT Study Group

A group of us meets every Saturday at Starbucks HSBC Uptown from 2pm - 5pm for discussions. If you are looking for study group in Kuala Lumpur/Petaling Jaya or need help with your GMAT preparation, come and join us.

"Rules"
  • This is an open group. Anyone can join as long as you participate positively in the discussion. All of us want to "do well" in GMAT - "doing well" means scoring more than 700. To achieve this, we need help each other understand the concepts and solve problems the GMAT way.
  • Sharing materials and strategies - we pass around materials that we find useful and explore techniques that help us in achieving our goal.
  • Networking begins now - that's what MBA is all about.
  • Celebrate success - we will celebate or find a reason to celebrate whenever someone in the group passes his/her GMAT, admits to B-school, leaves for B-school or graduates.

2 core members have committed to spend their weekend with this group even after completing GMAT. We want more to benefit from our experiences.

If you are interested, contact Jimmy (jimmy dot gmlow at gmail dot com) or Soon (cimdaa at gmail dot com). Contact us before you come as we might change the time or venue.


GMAT Study Venue

Jimmy Low